**: 365 Days: Day 4

First off, If you are a friend of Betchacantguesswho's, go here and then take a minute to say a little prayer won't you?
Okay, today was my 45th birthday. It was great! Thanks to everyone who took the time to make it a good one. I was IM'ed and left an e-card first thing this morning, I got another e-card and a gift certificate to Amazon.com from a special friend and my mom surprised me with a party at her office. She told me she was going to buy me lunch and asked what I wanted. You know? Birthdays really aren't a big deal for me. Haven't been for a long time, so I told her to just pick something. Anything would be fine with me. Well, when I walked into her office at noon, the whole office sang "Happy Birthday" to me, they had a crock pot full of barbecue waiting as well as a cake and a Boston creme pie! Thanks mom!
There were also plans for Duck a L'orange, bacon wrapped asparagus and parsley potatoes for my birthday dinner. Small change in plans. First, both the boys were here so I wasn't alone all night. Second, the asparagus looked like shit and was expensive as hell. Now, I don't mind paying for asparagus or any other fresh vegetable for that matter, but if I'm gonna shell out the ducks (no pun intended), it needs to at least LOOK fresh ... you listening Wal-Mart?
I also changed my mind on the duck preparation. I ended up making Chinatown Steamed and Roasted Duck with parsley potatoes. Damn, it really turned out GOOD! Here's a pic of the finished product before we demolished it.

Another thing I got today was my new glasses. I got a call at work that they were in so I went and picked them up. Yeah, I'm definitely 45. My eyes (at least my close vision) have deteriorated over the past year. I am pleased to say, however, that there was no sign of any diabetes-related problems developing inside the eye and, with the new glasses, I see much better. So for today's 365 Days I present you with my new specs!